JP2002257530A - Ball motion measuring device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [PROBLEMS] To provide a device capable of easily and accurately measuring the movement of a ball. A ball movement measuring device includes a line sensor (2).
It has. The line sensor 2 includes a large number of CCD elements 13 arranged in a line. CCD element 13
Is irradiated with illumination light (parallel light) from the lamp 1. The golf ball 10 hit by the golf club 12 passes through the detection surface. Then, the illumination light to the plurality of CCD elements 13 located immediately below the passing portion is temporarily blocked. Then, the current values of the signals output from these CCD elements 13 temporarily decrease. This allows
CCD element 13 over which golf ball 10 has passed directly above
Is specified by The lateral swing angle of the golf ball 10 is calculated from the positional relationship between the CCD element 13 and the golf ball 10 before being hit.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a ball motion measuring device such as a golf ball and a tennis ball.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When a golf ball is hit with a golf club, the golf ball is hit at a predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal direction. This angle is called "launch angle". Further, the golf ball may be launched while being shifted left and right with respect to the target direction. The left / right shift may be caused by a golfer's missed shot, or may be caused by the golfer's intention or swing habit. The angle of the left-right shift with respect to the target direction is called “left-right swing angle”.

[0003] The launch angle and the left-right swing angle greatly affect the trajectory of the golf ball thereafter. Similarly,
The speed (initial speed) of the golf ball immediately after being launched also has a great effect on the trajectory thereafter. The measurement of the launch angle, the left-right swing angle, and the initial speed is effective for diagnosing the golfer's swing form. These measurements are also effective in evaluating golf balls and golf clubs, and these measurements are inevitable during the development stage of golf balls and golf clubs.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing a state of measurement of a conventional left-right deflection angle. In this figure, tee 9
A golf ball 10 mounted on the tee 9, a golf club 12 having a head 11, a light projecting unit 51, and a light receiving unit 52 are shown. The light projecting unit 51 includes a large number of light projectors 53 arranged in a direction perpendicular to the target hitting direction. Further, the light receiving section 52 includes a large number of light receivers 54 arranged in a direction perpendicular to the target hitting direction. As shown by a two-dot chain line in the drawing, a laser beam 55 is emitted from the light projector 53 toward the light receiver 54. The traveling direction of the laser beam 55 is vertically downward. The light projector 53 and the light receiver 54 have a one-to-one correspondence. 1
The laser beams 55 emitted from the two projectors 53 are 1
The positional relationship between the light projector 53 and the light receiver 54 is adjusted so that the light is received by the two light receivers 54.

When the golf ball 10 is hit, it traverses the laser beam 55, that is, the laser beam 55
Flying with temporary shielding. The occlusion (that is, the passage of the golf ball 10) is detected by the light receiver 54.
The left-right swing angle of the golf ball 10 is calculated based on which of the light receivers 54 has detected the passage.

The light projector 53 and the light receiver 54 are usually provided at a pitch of, for example, about 30 mm. On the other hand, since the diameter of the golf ball 10 is about 43 mm, the golf ball 10 blocks a plurality of laser beams 55. Therefore, in the calculation of the lateral shake angle, the order of shielding for each laser beam 55, the time lag of shielding, and the like are considered.

[0007]

In this measuring method, both the light projecting unit 51 and the light receiving unit 52 need to be installed.
It becomes a large measuring device. In addition, the projector 53
And the receiver 54 is generally expensive and the projector 53
It is necessary to align the optical axis of the measuring device and the light receiving device 54, so that the manufacturing cost of the measuring device is high. In addition, from the viewpoint of preventing the displacement of the optical axis, means for fixing the positional relationship between the light projecting unit 51 and the light receiving unit 52 (for example, a strong support, etc.) is necessary, and almost no measurement is carried out by taking the measuring device outdoors. Impossible.

Further, in this measuring device, since the light emitter 53 and the light receiver 54 are arranged at a predetermined interval as described above, a part of the contour of the golf ball 10 passes through the gap between the laser beams 55, 55. In some cases. In this case, the measurement accuracy of the lateral shake angle is reduced. If the interval between the light emitter 53 and the light receiver 54 is set smaller, the measurement accuracy is improved. In this case, however, the light emitter 53 and the light receiver 5
There is a problem that the optical axis alignment with No. 4 becomes extremely complicated.

The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a device that can easily and accurately measure the motion of a ball.

[0010]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, an invention made up of a large number of CCs arranged in a line is provided.
A line sensor having a D element; and a calculating means for calculating a flight direction or a flight speed of the ball based on a change in an output signal from the CCD element when the ball passes a detection surface formed by the line sensor. Ball motion measuring device,
It is.

In this ball motion measuring device, the passage of the ball is detected by the CCD element. This ball motion measuring device is compact and does not require optical axis alignment. Therefore, this ball motion measuring device can be obtained at low cost. Further, since the CCD elements can be densely arranged, the measurement accuracy of the ball motion can be improved.

Preferably, the ball movement measuring device further includes an illuminating means for illuminating the line sensor with illumination light. Thereby, detection of the passing ball (particularly, detection of the contour portion) is performed with high accuracy. In particular, if parallel light is applied, the measurement accuracy is further improved.

[0013]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG.
The present invention will be described in detail based on preferred embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a ball motion measuring device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The ball movement measuring device includes a lamp 1 as an irradiation unit, a line sensor 2, a CPU 3 as a calculation unit, and a monitor 4
And a printer 5. The line sensor 2 is connected to the CPU 3 by a cable 6. Monitor 4
Are connected to the CPU 3 by a cable 7. The printer 5 is connected to the CPU 3 by a cable 8.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing a state of measurement using the ball motion measuring device of FIG. FIG. 1 shows a tee 9, a golf ball 10 mounted on the tee 9, a golf club 12 having a head 11, a line sensor 2, and a lamp 1. The line sensor 2 and the lamp 1 are installed in parallel. The line sensor 2 and the lamp 1 are installed such that their longitudinal directions are orthogonal to the target direction of the golf ball 10. The line sensor 2 has a large number of C arranged in the longitudinal direction.
A CD element 13 is provided. Illumination light is emitted from the lamp 1 toward the line sensor 2. A plane including the lamp 1 and the line sensor 2 is a detection surface.

An output signal is sent from the CCD element 13 to the CPU 3 (not shown in FIG. 2). The current value of this output signal changes according to the brightness sensed by the CCD element 13. Specifically, the current value increases when the image is bright, and decreases when the image is dark. As described above, since the line sensor 2 is irradiated with the illumination light from the lamp 1, the CCD element 13 normally outputs an output signal having a relatively large current value.

With this ball movement measuring device, the golf ball 1
When the movement of 0 is measured, the golf ball 10 is first placed on the tee 9 and the golfer swings the golf club 12. Then, the head 11 collides with the golf ball 10. As a result, the golf ball 10 is substantially
It is launched in the diagonally upper right direction. The launched golf ball 10 passes through the detection surface.

When the golf ball 10 passes through the detection surface,
Illumination light to the plurality of CCD elements 13 located immediately below the passing location is temporarily blocked. And these CC
The current value of the signal output from the D element 13 temporarily decreases. Thereby, the CPU 3 specifies the CCD element 13 over which the golf ball 10 has passed. Since the position of the golf ball 10 before hitting (the position of the tee 9) is known in advance, the position relationship between the tee 9 and the CCD element 13 through which the golf ball 10 passes directly above the tee 9 indicates that the CP
U3 calculates the right-left swing angle of the golf ball 10. The calculated left-right swing angle is displayed on the monitor 4 or output by the printer 5.

In this measuring device, since the horizontal deflection angle is detected by the line sensor 2 having the CCD element 13, the size becomes large as in the conventional measuring device provided with the light projecting unit 51 and the light receiving unit 52. There is no. In addition, since the illumination light only needs to be directed to the line sensor 2, it is not necessary to perform strict optical axis alignment required in the conventional measurement apparatus. Therefore, this measuring device can be obtained at low cost. In addition, the light emitting unit 51 required for the conventional measuring device is used.
It is not necessary to use a column or the like that fixes the positional relationship between the light receiving unit 52 and the light receiving unit 52. Therefore, the measuring device can be carried outside (for example, a golf course), and the measurement can be performed here. Further, the measuring device can be provided in a golf driving range (so-called "unleashed") or a golf goods store, for example.

Since the CCD elements 13 can be arranged very densely, the width at which the illumination light is shielded by the line sensor 2 is a width substantially reflecting the diameter of the golf ball 10. Therefore, the measurement accuracy is improved as compared with the conventional measurement device using the laser beam 55.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged front view showing a part of the line sensor 2 of FIG. The horizontal direction in this figure is
This is the longitudinal direction of the line sensor 2. As described above, the line sensor 2 includes a number of CCD elements 13 arranged in the longitudinal direction. From the viewpoint of measurement accuracy, the pitch of the CCD elements 13 (indicated by a double arrow P in FIG. 3) is preferably 5 mm or less, and particularly preferably 2 mm or less. The smaller the pitch P, the higher the measurement accuracy. However, since it is difficult to manufacture the line sensor 2 with a too small pitch P, the pitch P is usually 0.5 mm or more. From the viewpoint of measurement accuracy,
The gap (indicated by a double-headed arrow S in FIG. 3) between the CCD elements 13 is preferably 0.5 mm or less.
Particularly preferred is 15 mm or less, ideally zero.

A specific example of the preferred line sensor 2 is "photodiode array" (trade name, manufactured by Hamamatsu Photonics Co., Ltd.) because the element pitch P is as small as 1.0 mm and the gap S is as small as 0.1 mm. In particular, the "S4111 series" is preferable.

From the viewpoint that the contour of the illumination light shielded by the golf ball 10 and the contour of the golf ball 10 coincide with each other and the measurement accuracy is improved, the illumination light is preferably parallel light. When a sufficient contrast between light and dark is obtained between when the golf ball 10 passes and at other times, the lamp 1 may be omitted.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing a state of measurement using a ball motion measuring device according to another embodiment of the present invention. In this figure, tee 9 and this tee 9
1 shows a golf ball 10 mounted on a golf club, a golf club 12 having a head 11, and a line sensor 14. The line sensor 14 is installed at a position closer to the paper surface in FIG. 3 than the trajectory of the golf ball 10. Although not shown, this measuring device also includes a CPU 3, a monitor 4, a printer 5, and a lamp 1 similar to those of the measuring device shown in FIGS. The line sensor 14 is C
It is connected to PU3. Lamp 1 is a line sensor 1
4, the line sensor 1
Irradiation light (preferably parallel light) is emitted toward the light source 4.

As is apparent from FIG. 4, in the line sensor 14 of this measuring device, the CCD elements 13 are arranged vertically. When the golf ball 10 is hit and passes through the detection surface, a plurality of CCs located in front of the passing location
Illumination light to the D element 13 (the CCD element 13 whose height matches the passing position of the golf ball 10) is temporarily blocked. Then, the current values of the signals output from these CCD elements 13 temporarily decrease. As a result, the CCD element 13 through which the golf ball 10 has passed in front of it is
3 is specified. The CPU 3 calculates the launch angle of the golf ball 10 from the positional relationship between the golf ball 10 before hitting and the CCD element 13 through which the golf ball 10 has passed. The calculated launch angle is displayed on the monitor 4 or output by the printer 5.

A line sensor 2 (shown in FIG. 2) in which CCD elements 13 are arranged in the horizontal direction,
A line sensor 14 (shown in FIG. 4) in which the CD elements 13 are arranged may be provided together to constitute a ball movement measuring device. Thereby, the left-right swing angle and the launch angle can be measured simultaneously.

FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view showing a state of measurement using a ball motion measuring device according to still another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 shows a tee 9, a golf ball 10 placed on the tee 9, a golf club 12 having a head 11, a first line sensor 15 and a second line sensor 16. The two line sensors 15 and 16 are disposed closer to the paper surface of FIG. 5 than the trajectory of the golf ball 10. Although not shown, this measuring device also includes the same CPU 3, monitor 4, and printer 5 as the measuring device shown in FIGS. The line sensors 15 and 16 are connected to the CPU 3. In addition, the measuring device includes two lamps 1 (not shown in FIG. 5) corresponding to the respective line sensors 15 and 16. Lamp 1 is a line sensor 1
It is provided in front of the paper surface with respect to 5 and 16, and is irradiated light (preferably parallel light) toward the line sensors 15 and 16.
Has been irradiated.

In the line sensors 15 and 16 of this measuring device, as in the case of the line sensor 14 shown in FIG.
The elements 13 are arranged in a vertical direction. Golf ball 1
When 0 is hit, the first line sensor 15 first detects the passage. Next, the passage of the golf ball 10 is detected by the second line sensor 16. Then, based on the time from when the passage of the golf ball 10 is detected by the first line sensor 15 to when it is detected by the second line sensor 16 and the distance from the first line sensor 15 to the second line sensor 16, The CPU 3 calculates an initial speed of the golf ball 10. The calculated initial speed is
It is displayed on the monitor 4 or output by the printer 5. With this measuring device, the launch angle can be calculated together with the initial speed.

Although the present invention has been described in detail by taking the flight direction (launch angle and swing angle) and flight speed (initial speed) of the golf ball 10 as an example, a ball other than the golf ball 10, such as a tennis ball, is used. The present invention can also be used for measuring the movement of a subject.

[0030]

As described above, the use of the ball motion measuring device of the present invention enables the ball motion to be measured with high accuracy. Further, this motion measuring device can be obtained simply and at low cost. Furthermore, since this measuring device is excellent in portability, it can be used in any place.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a ball movement measuring device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing a state of measurement using the ball movement measuring device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged front view showing a part of the line sensor of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing a state of measurement using a ball motion measuring device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view showing a state of measurement using a ball motion measuring device according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing a state of measurement of a conventional left-right swing angle.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Lamp 2, 14, 15, 16 ... Line sensor 3 ... CPU4 ... Monitor 5 ... Printer 10 ... Golf ball 11 ... Head 12 ... Golf club 13 ... CCD elements

Claims (3)

[The claims] 1. A line sensor having a large number of CCD elements arranged in a line, and a change in an output signal from the CCD element when the ball passes a detection surface formed by the line sensor. A ball movement measuring device comprising: a calculating means for calculating a flight direction or a flight speed. 2. The ball motion measuring device according to claim 1, further comprising an illumination unit that emits illumination light toward the line sensor. 3. The ball motion measuring device according to claim 2, wherein the light beam emitted from the illumination means is a parallel light.